Hebrew word · H3795

כָּתִית

katit

beaten

From the verb katat, 'to beat, crush, pound fine' (used for beating swords into ploughshares, Isa 2:4). As a description of oil it means oil produced by crushing or pounding olives, probably in a mortar, and letting the oil run out, instead of extracting it under the heavy weight of a beam press.

Appears 5 times in 5 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) beaten out, pure, pounded fine (in a mortar), costly

1a) of olive oil

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Numbers 28:5

Range of meaning

From the verb katat, 'to beat, crush, pound fine' (used for beating swords into ploughshares, Isa 2:4). As a description of oil it means oil produced by crushing or pounding olives, probably in a mortar, and letting the oil run out, instead of extracting it under the heavy weight of a beam press.

Against the English

KJV, WEB, ESV and NASB say 'beaten oil', which is literal but unclear to modern readers. BSB and NIV say 'oil from pressed olives', which is readable but suggests a press, the very method that gave a lower-grade oil. NLT says 'pure oil of pressed olives'.

How it drifted

'Pressed' calls up modern olive presses and labels such as 'cold-pressed'. In ancient practice the beam press was mainly used for the later, lower-quality extraction. The first, lightly crushed oil was clearer and more valuable.

Used elsewhere in the period

Shemen katit is also prescribed for the tabernacle lampstand (Exod 27:20; Lev 24:2), where clear oil that burned cleanly mattered. It appears in the original daily-offering law (Exod 29:40) and among the luxury goods Solomon sent to Hiram (1 Kgs 5:11 [5:25 Heb.]). The Mishnah (Menachot 8:4–5) ranks olive oils by method and treats the first oil from crushed olives as the best, with the finest reserved for the lamp.

From the study of Exodus 27:20

Range of meaning

An adjective from the verb kātat, 'to crush, beat, pound fine.' It is used only of oil: oil got by crushing or pounding olives, as opposed to oil squeezed out under a heavy press.

Against the English

KJV, WEB, NASB and ESV have 'beaten'. BSB, NIV and NLT have 'pressed', which suggests the beam press, the very method kātît oil was distinguished from. 'Beaten' or 'crushed' is closer.

How it drifted

For a modern reader 'pressed olive oil' sounds like any ordinary oil, or even suggests 'cold-pressed.' The Hebrew names a specific top grade made by a gentler, slower method.

Used elsewhere in the period

The same oil is required for the daily 'regular' (tamid) offering (Exod 29:40; Num 28:5). Solomon pays Hiram with 'beaten oil' as a luxury good (1 Kgs 5:11). The Mishnah (Menachot 8:4–5) ranks oils by how they were made. It names oil from olives pounded in a mortar and left to drip as the best, and reserves the first oil for the lampstand. Archaeology of Iron Age olive installations shows both simple crushing basins and beam presses with weights.

From the study of Exodus 29:40

Range of meaning

'Beaten, crushed'. It comes from the root katat, 'to pound or crush to bits'. Joined to shemen ('oil'), it means a specific grade: oil from olives crushed in a mortar or lightly pounded and left to drain. That first oil was clear and low in sediment, and it was more costly than oil forced out under heavy pressing.

Against the English

KJV, NASB, ESV and WEB say 'beaten oil', which is literal but obscure to modern readers. BSB and NIV say 'oil from pressed olives', which suggests a heavy olive press and misses the point that this is the first, finest oil.

How it drifted

English 'pressed' has become the general word for making olive oil. The Hebrew picks out the gentler pounding process and the higher-quality oil it produced.

Used elsewhere in the period

Exod 27:20 and Lev 24:2 require 'pure beaten oil' for the sanctuary lamp. Solomon pays Hiram of Tyre in 'beaten oil' (1 Kgs 5:11 [5:25 Heb]), so it was a trade good of high value. Num 28:5 repeats this verse's specification. The Mishnah (Menahot 8:4) describes graded olive oils and treats the first oil from crushing as the best.

Where it appears

Exodus · 2

  1. Exodus 27:20 כָּתִ֖ית pressed

    And you are to command the Israelites to bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to keep the lamps burning continually.

    Here: Oil from olives crushed or pounded, usually in a mortar, instead of squeezed hard in a heavy press. This gave the first and finest grade of oil.

  2. Exodus 29:40 כָּתִית֙ pressed

    With the first lamb offer a tenth of an ephah of fine flour, mixed with a quarter hin of oil from pressed olives, and a drink offering of a quarter hin of wine.

    Here: Oil made by pounding olives rather than squeezing them under heavy weights. It is the first and clearest oil, the same grade used for the sanctuary lamp (Exod 27:20).

Leviticus · 1

  1. Leviticus 24:2 כָּתִ֖ית pressed

    “Command the Israelites to bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to keep the lamps burning continually.

    Here: Oil from olives crushed or pounded, as in a mortar, rather than squeezed hard in a press. This first, gentle extraction gave the clearest and finest oil.

Numbers · 1

  1. Numbers 28:5 כָּתִ֖ית pressed

    along with a tenth of an ephah of fine flour as a grain offering, mixed with a quarter hin of oil from pressed olives.

    Here: 'Beaten, crushed': oil obtained by pounding olives, not by heavy pressing. This gives the clearest and finest oil, the same grade required for the sanctuary lamp (Exod 27:20).

1 Kings · 1

  1. 1 Kings 5:11 כָּתִ֑ית pressed

    and year after year Solomon would provide Hiram with 20,000 cors of wheat as food for his household, as well as 20,000 baths of pure olive oil.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.